A Civil Conversation
by Pozagee
Summary: No real plot. Snape and Harry are trapped in a small inclosed space. A conversation ensues, involving a certain cupboard under the stairs. Claustrophobia. No Slash. Characters IC.


A Civil Conversation

~Pozagee~

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Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter... well... anything.

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"This is all your fault!"

"I think not. Was I the one to foolishly run into trouble?"

"I was NOT being foolish. I heard someone asking for help-"

"So naturally, being the imbecilic and rash Gryffindor that you are, you imediately jumped at the chance to play hero once again."

Harry glared, though the effect was lost, due to the cavern that he and Snape were stuck in was pitch black.

"I didn't ask you to follow me...sir," Harry growled.

"In case you are unaware of the excruciatingly obvious fact that it is my duty to protect you, let me say this: If this was a trap, and you ended up dead at the hands of the dark lord or his true followers, I would be the first to be blamed."

"Oh. So you followed me to save your own hide? Gee. Thanks. Makes me feel just wonderful," Harry said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

Snape's sneer was clearly present in his deep voice. "As previously stated, my job is to protect you. Not like you."

Harry laughed with dry humor. "Oh, no misunderstanding. I figured you would know sarcasm when you heard it."

There was silence. Harry sighed dramatically, standing... Well, sort of. Even in his small short form, he wasn't able to stand up straight. And the room was really small. Too small. Too small and too dark and too stuffy. Too... cupboard-like.

"So... this place is really small," Harry said loudly, louder than needed. Snape was only a couple feet away, anyway.

"Must you talk so loud?" the older man grumbled, shifting his back against the rough stone, trying to find a semi comfortable position.

Harry's hands moved across the stone, but as the two had discovered earlier, there were no cracks big enough to tear at, let alone fit through. The air was stagnant and hot, making Harry shiver.

"When do you think they'll find us?" Harry asked. Snape rose an eyebrow at his high-pitched voice.

"I do not know. The Headmaster should be aware of our being missing now. Probably trace us here, if the stupid thing will HURRY UP! Darned delayed Patronus..." Snape mused. "And you will have to explain to him how we got into this predicament. And HE will have to give you lessons on how to differentiate between human and snake voices!"

Harry nodded absently, his hands scraping over the rough stone with renewed vigor. He HAD to get out of here. He hated cramped dark places.

"Potter! What are you doing?" Snape snapped.

'Snape snapped,' Harry though absently. 'Isn't that a rhyme, or onomatopoeia? Wait, isn't it an alliteration?'

"Potter! Lumos!" Light suddenly flooded the small space. It was so abrupt that Harry spun around, colapsing in shock, before berating himself. 'Why didn't I think of Lumos? I HAVE my WAND!'

There was a short silence, before Harry said with an almost Luna Lovegood-like voice. "The walls are wet. It must be raining outside."

Snape growled, "No. That's called blood, genius."

Harry looked down at his hands in shock, at the scrapes. "Oh."

Snape rolled his eyes, grabbing Harry's wrists roughly. "Give me your wand."

"What?! Why?!" Harry yelped, though narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

Snape rolled his eyes dramatically. "I'm not going to take you to the Dark Lord. How could I anyhow? You can't-"

"Apparate on Hogwarts' grounds. Yeah, I know." Harry sighed, reluctantly handing his long thin wand over. Snape spelled Lumos with his wand, placing it in between his teeth.

Harry grimaced. "Ew. Why do you have my wand in your mouth?" He vaguely wondered if you could wash wands? Or maybe douse it in hand sanitizer? Either way, there was NO WAY he was going to touch that thing until it was officially de-Snape-ified.

Snape sent him a tired glare, before he started to mumble around the wand, directing his own at Harry's hands. Snape turned Harry's wand so it was directing the right amount of light on each cut, as he healed them. Harry watched in fascination as the cuts knitted together, to form soft new skin.

"Cool," Harry muttered, as Snape tossed him his wand. Harry flinched away from it, not very interested in touching it again, but when he refused to grab it, the Lumos sputtered out, leaving them in the suffocating darkness yet again. Harry quickly snatched up his wand, (rubbing it on his shirt), before casting a bright Lumos. Snape winced.

"You do not need to have that ridiculous wand lit up the whole time we are here..." Snape trailed off, scrutinizing Harry. "What were you doing anyway; with the wall?"

Harry blinked. "Oh that. It's nothing..." he stated slowly. Snape rolled his eyes, sneering.

"Oh, I'm sure. Master of Occlumency that you are, I can totally tell you are telling the truth. Come now," Snape muttered.

Harry glowered. "It isn't important, now is it? We need to get out of this stupid passageway!"

Snape crossed his arms, sitting up as tall as he could, without hitting his greasy head on the top of the stone 'room'. "Unfortunately, we have done all we can to escape, at the current. Albus has been alerted, and hell if you think we're going to risk the passage collapsing by trying to dig ourselves out." Harry vaguely wondered if the lack of air was effecting Snape's brain; he hadn't tried to assign a detention or take points, AND, he had just CUSSED!

"So," Snape continued, "I have nothing better to do than to worry about precious Potter's petty little problems."

'Alliteration again,' Harry smirked, before shaking his head. "I don't have problems... Well, not petty ones. I wouldn't consider Voldemort petty, would you?"

Snape grimaced at the name usage, but otherwise ignored the comment. "What is your problem? Afraid of the dark? Claustrophobic?"

Harry bit his lip. How could he explain neither of those things phased him, unless put together. But wait, why would he want to tell SNAPE anything? The snarky man would probably have his fears known throughout Slytherin by the end of the week.

"Merlin," Snape breathed, shock and ill concealed glee showed on his face. "You ARE afraid of the dark and Claustrophobic!" The Potions Master looked like Christmas had just came early.

"No!" Harry denied.

"Alone, they are fine," he explained more calmly, seeing Snape's disbelieving face. "But put them together-"

"And you have a panic attack," Snape mused, ignoring Harry's flush. He leaned against the wall, his face in pondering mode. "Why would that be?"

Harry was shocked by the lack of derisive comments. But it was a pretty odd thing to be afraid of, he assumed. "I don't know."

"Do. Not. Lie. To me," Snape snarled, glaring daggers at the green eyed boy.

"As stated earlier, I fail to see how this is of any consequence," Harry replied curtly, trying to avoid having to divulge any unwanted information to his most hated teacher.

Snape rose an elegant eyebrow. "You seem to speak better English when you want to avoid talking about a certain subject. How very... Slytherin."

In all truth, that could have been taken as either an insult or a compliment... But the person the statement was directed at being Harry Potter...

"Take that back! I am not a bloody Slytherin!" Harry exploded jumping to his feet, (and sufficiently gaining a headache from the low ceiling).

"I will if you answer my question."

"Oh, NOW who's being Slytherin," Harry muttered, rolling his eyes, before realizing how stupid that comment seemed, considering who he was talking to.

"Fine. But its not important; it was a long time ago..." Harry trailed off. He hadn't even told Ron or Hermione about where his bedroom had been before he received his Hogwarts letter.

"You see, not all Muggles are... accepting to magic-"

"Oh, I'm quite aware of the fact," Snape interrupted, causing Harry to glower at him.

"Anyway, my relatives didn't-don't really like me, but I think it's more fear than hatred..." He shook his head to clear those fun thoughts away. "But they always told me how I was different from normal people. That I-" 'What? Wasn't as good as them? I was abnormal? A freak? That I deserve nothing?' "That I shouldn't get the same treatment as normal people."

Snape had a faraway look on his face, his premature wrinkles and greying hair sticking out more in the dim light, making him look as though he had aged a hundred years. His eyes, though, still glowed that deep intense black.

"So," Harry continued, surprised by the tightening of his throat, "My room was the cupboard under the stairs." He knew it was a pitiful explanation, but how else was he to phrase it without it seeming worse than it was.

There was silence, as Snape stared at the stone wall across from where he sat. Slowly, he leaned forward pressing his fingers to his eyes, as though to alleviate a headache. "A cupboard," Snape whispered.

"Do they feed you?" Snape finally asked louder, though he still refused to look at Harry.

Harry shrugged. "They don't starve me."

Annoyed by the cryptic answer, Snape sat up and glared at Harry, though the expression quickly left, his face drooping like wax from a candle. "Do they beat you?"

Harry was surprised by the question, before he let out an uncomfortable chuckle. "Naw, they don't abuse me or anything."

Snape seemed a bit relieved that his relatives didn't hit him, but seemed to believe the previously stated answers were abuse.

"I'm sorry, Potter," Snape suddenly, and very randomly, apologized.

Harry shrugged, feeling awkward, and really unsure. "Hey. Its not your fault or anything-"

Snape sighed heavily, finally facing him square on. "Not about that, though I am sorry about that as well. Or maybe empathetic... No, I meant about-" Snape gestured vaguely with his hands, as though he meant everything. But Harry understood. 'Arrogant, spoiled brat... The list went on and on.'

"Yeah, and I'm sorry too. I mean, all of our fights were half my fault. I shouldn't have been that disrespectful... Or maybe I should have looked more like my mum than my dad."

Snape let out a deep gurgling chuckle. "Either way, your face would haunt me."

Harry felt confused by that statement, but shrugged it off, grateful that they had actually had a civil conversation with the man. But Snape seemed preoccupied at the moment.

Harry sat back, feeling comfortable with the silence that was taking place. He could even here voices around them as the Hogwarts staff fought to dig them out.

Right before the final layer of rocks was removed, Snape muttered to Harry quietly, "I will be discussing your home situation with the Headmaster. Just to tell you."

Harry nodded. He and Snape would never like each other. But they could at least coexist. Sometimes...

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A/N The End! Tada! And now onto Darkness...

Mozenrath: Whoo whoo whoo. What happened to writing about me?

Once-ler: Or me?

Vlad: Uh, hello?!

The Poz: Uh... Sorry guys, but HP readers/reviewers are a bit scary if you don't update soon enough.

Mozenrath: I don't care. I want powers.

Once-ler: I wanna sell a Thneed!

Vlad: I want Maddie, Danny, and the Packers.

The Poz: Sorry Moze. You'll just get to befriend Aladdin.

Mozenrath: Oh goody. Note the sarcasm.

The Poz: And Oncie, how about hurt/comfort between you and the Lorax?

Once-ler: *mumbles* hurt comfort addict.

The Poz: And Vlad? Sorry bro, but the bears are Beast!

Vlad: Stupid girl.

The Poz: gee. Thanx.

Well anyway,

Review!


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